The Maiden and the Prince
by Elfea goddess of the Sunset
Summary: The first LOTR fanfic I ever wrote!! Also the first angst LOTR fic I've written.. ooh angst.. i love that word.. anyway... A story of love and heartbreak... you know the drill ^_^ Please read and reveiw! Reveiws make me feel special ^_^
1. Prolouge

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters that you recognise. I also don't own any of the places that you recognise. I don't own any of the creatures that you recognise. And, just to be safe, I don't own any of the characters that Tolkien invented. All the characters that Tolkien did not invent are mine, and that's a grand total of two (yay.)

So, please don't sue me. ^_^ 

A/N: And here we have it! The debut of my spiffy canid chara, Orban the wolf. Orban appears in many of the fics that I write… and… most of the Legolas ones fit together, I now realise. Scary. And, as this is the first LOTR fic I ever wrote, I fear it's probably the proud owner of plot-holes the size of Perth. (Wait.. that's not that big… Melbourne then ^_^) This, I suppose, is also the debut of my usual elf-maiden-chara-that-definateley-is-not-based-on-anyone-especially-not-me…

Yay

So, enjoy… ^^

*bows and leaves*

Once, in the land of Mirkwood, there lived a fair elven maiden and a handsome elven prince. The greatest of friends were they, and over the years, that friendship blossomed into love, a love not known before even to immortal hearts. It was strong and pure, and full of trust. They were seldom seen far apart, and whenever they were separated by force or necessity, neither seemed whole or real.

They often went on walks together, through the forest. It was said that the elf-maiden had an extraordinary skill with talking to animals, and on the return of one such venture she brought back a black wolf cub with eyes near as green as her own.

Later, the prince taught her archery, as he was the keenest archer in all Arda. In return, she taught him to play the flute – a skill she was renowned for.

The years went on, and their' love grew and bloomed* like a well-tended tree. On the dawn of the 500th year of his life, he asked for her hand in marriage. She responded instantly and without doubt – she knew only one answer, and that answer was yes.

They were to wed when the moon had waxed and waned three times from that day, and there was no word to describe their' joy, or their' love.

But on the second month, he was called away to Rivendell on an urgent business he could not ignore. She begged him first not to go, and then to let her travel with him. "I will be no burden onto you." Said she, "Nay, it is to dangerous, my love," Said he. She wept and he embraced her tightly, and they kissed their' last kiss. 

On the day of his departure, she rode aside him for a time, neither able to speak. And as he disappeared into the mists of distance, not once did he look away from her, till she was gone from the sight of even his far-seeing eyes. "I will be waiting for you, my love." Said she, and turned back into the forest, her heart heavy with despair.

But in the days that followed a great party of Orcs came to the mighty forests of Mirkwood, and their' leader demanded the maiden to be handed over, or they would destroy the entire realm, and their' numbers were such that they could do so. When asked what for they replied only "For the master to question." The king was loath to do so, for he had come to love the maiden as a daughter. In the end, it was she who surrendered, to save the lives of her kinfolk. It was said that her horse and a great black wolf with blazing green eyes followed at a distance, but of her fate, no – one knows.

The prince returned three days later, looking weary, and his horse mangy and lathered. He had a look of utmost grief on his face, and spoke only these four words to his father : "She's gone, isn't she?" His father replied and told his son the story. "She left this for you, my son." The king said, handing the prince a package. The prince said nothing but took the package and made swiftly for their' favourite place – the place were they first had met. He opened the package, and read an enclosed note;

To my dearest, dearest beloved,

_When the orcs came, I knew they came for me. I would not have left you, but what was I to do? For what is one life to all the elves of Mirkwood? Know, my dearest, that my heart holds no grudge against you, and that I left through no fault of yours. I know that you will blame yourself, and I beg you not to. I want you to know that I love you, and  that I will never forget you, not even if I live till the end of days. Know also, dearest, that as long as I live, I will try to find a way back to you. Do not despair! And live, my beloved, live. _

_Amdir. (hope.)_

He read these words over and over, as if reading them would cause his beloved to return. But she did not, and he wept silent tears. Silent only because his grief was too whole for sound. And it was only the hope that his beloved would return to him that kept him from dying. He looked through the rest of the package, and two things he found: one, a beautiful flute that he had seen her toil over for months, and the chain with the silver star that she had always worn about her neck. He put on the necklace, and wrote a note to her and buried it at the base of her tree.† On the note were five words; "I will never forget you."

***

* the use of this word has nothing to do with the last name of a certain actor. No, seriously! I wrote this years ago!! It's just one of those freaky coincidence-things!

† In this story, either the maiden was supposed to be half-dryad or she had a tree planted at her birth, for some reason. I wrote this so long ago, and I can't remember why the maiden had a tree. So, yeah… Oh, and it's a mallorn tree, eve though they're not supposed to grow in Mirkwood. ^_^

A/N: Hi. It's me again…. Yes… I know that this plot has been used at least… oh, I dunno… It's been used a lot, and I am aware of that.. so, I'm trying to make the rest as original as possible, though, given the sheer volume of Legolas fics there are out there now, I doubt this is possible, but, anyway...I'm not ripping off anyone's' story intentionally, so don't flame me, please, unless it's an amusing insult. I enjoy amusing, original and witty insults. The usual ones bore me. Bear in mind that if you refuse to heed my plea, and flame me, unoriginally, you yourself shall be flamed. ^_^  Okaies? Oh, and constructive criticism is also appreciated, and of course, flattery is adored. ^_^ So please review!


	2. Memories...

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters that you recognise. I also don't own any of the places that you recognise. I don't own any of the creatures that you recognise. And, just to be safe, I don't own any of the characters that Tolkien invented. All the characters that Tolkien did not invent are mine, and that's a grand total of two (yay.)

So, please don't sue me. ^_^ 

***

Legolas looked up at the night sky as he walked along with the fellowship, and thought of the past, and dreamed of what could have been. Gimili the dwarf looked upon the face of his friend, and grew troubled. "Legolas..?" He asked tentatively.  Legolas started at the sound of his name, then shook his head slightly and smiled at his friend, though the smile did not reach his eyes. "Is there something troubling you, my friend?" Gimili asked gently. Legolas sighed, then his face grew carefully impassive. "Nay, my friend. Naught that you could mend." His attention returned to the road ahead, though there was a slight change in his posture and gait.

Gimili's own face grew troubled. He could see that Legolas was upset – and that he did not wish to speak of the matter further. He decided to let the matter drop for a time.

Legolas began to softly sing the words of a song in an old elven language that none in that group save he knew. After a time, the words faded slowly into humming, and Legolas' bright elven eyes began to glisten with tears. He wiped them away, not wanting anyone to notice.

A/N: So, what do you think? Should I continue this fic, or does it finish well here? Please forgive me for the astounding shortness of this chapter.. However, originally it was a part of the last chapter, but I thought it flowed better like this ^_^ Please review!


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